Water fell from the sky Wednesday afternoon and water didn't flow in the powder rooms. These were just two of the challenges facing Mike VanGenderen and his staff as they tried to open the Stuart International Speedway for the first time under his guidance on Wednesday but everyone stayed the course and racing took place at the high banked quarter mile for the first time under his watch.
Seventy nine cars in my five countable classes showed up and they put on a good opening night program despite all the things working against them from mid afternoon on.
The potential was there for some explosive weather as a cold front swept through the area in the mid afternoon hours. I felt like a fool when I jumped out of my car with a sweatshirt on, only to be greeted by temperatures in the mid seventies and a hot wind blowing from the Southwest. Most of the storms blew up to the North of Stuart but there was one small line that came through, depositing just a light shower for a few minutes before it moved on and out of the area with blue skies to replace it soon after. However, then the winds increased and shifted directions and the temperatures plummeted, making for quite a miserable evening from that standpoint.
And wouldn't you think a veteran race fan would not venture off to a track over five hours away and forget to bring a coat? Well, that's the situation I put myself in and before the evening was over I would pay the consequences for my lapse in judgement. I also forgot the power cord for my phone so soon I had a dead phone and nearly some dead body parts before the final checkered flag waved. But I digress.
Mike VG was a nervous before a race as I have ever seen him before. But this was a new deal for him. This was his track alone and he was not just running the show for someone else. Plus, he did have some issues that he was fighting back against. He still has no water as the water lines are either frozen or broken. He brought in a flotilla of "portables" to take care of the needs of his fans but he had no running water to either take care of the track of for cooking. Where he got the water for that I do not know and perhaps, don't want to know. The bottom line is that the pits and track got watered and the food got prepared. Concessions are a huge item at any track as well as a giant headache and when Mike lost his concession manager, fortunately his sister stepped in to fill the void.
Mike had everything painted and spruced up that could be and the whole facility looked as nice as I have ever seen it before. He is a stickler about that and I was impressed how nice everything looked. That might not be a huge deal to some people but I always think that a place that is painted up and looking sharp makes me think they care just that little extra. But again I digress.
The problem with a midweek race track is that everyone shows up at the same time, when they get home from work and pile in the car to head to the track, whether to race or spectate. For that reason, the pits remained quite empty until just after 6 pm and then all heck broke loose as the cars were lined up all the way over the hill as everyone tried to get into the pits at the same time. This produced a little back up and resulted in the first green flag being about fifteen minutes late. However, after that point it was smooth running all the way, as most MVG promoted shows are. And much of the delays will have been taken care of with most of the drivers having now completed their essential paperwork.
It was the Tim Stevens Memorial race and over three thousand dollars was added to the purse in donations going to a variety of finishing spots in all the mains. Good fields of cars were on hand in all classes with only the Modifieds not showing in the numbers perhaps I would have hoped for. They ran themselves out of Osky by not showing up in acceptable numbers. Let's hope the same thing doesn't happen here in Stuart.
The track was a bit heavy early in the show as MVG had given the track a good splash of water to try and keep the winds, gusting at approximately 430 mph and blowing right into the stands, from dusting out the fans. This held until the heats were completed and then the track quickly changed character as it went dry and slick with drivers searching for the best line around the track. There was plenty of pack style racing in the heats and only two yellows in eleven preliminary events, so we were quickly back on schedule.
A quick break was held for a challenge race with all heat race winners in all classes, save the Sport Compacts, spread out around the track to race against each other. Richie Gustin came from nine tenth of a lap down to pass Hobby Stock driver Corey Madden on the last lap and collect the cash.
Then it was feature time. We led right off with perhaps the best feature of the night first and that was the Hobby Stocks. Shannon Anderson started in the second row and he was able to "strong arm" his way into the lead on the opening lap. However, as opposed to most times when he gets in front, he wasn't able to run away from the field on this night. Madden and Adam Ayers were battling hard for second as they swapped the spot back and forth and then both caught Anderson. A three way battle for the spot broke out with Anderson and Madden exchanging clean but exciting slide jobs for the lead. Anderson was searching around the track, trying to find the best line and he was vulnerable. They battled hard right down to the end with some contact on the final lap as Anderson slipped inside Madden in turn two and held him off by inches for a great finish. Almost not noticed was John Watson who had started thirteenth and had caught the top three, only to run out of laps.
All twenty one Sport Mods started the main and that created quite the track jam. However, everyone did a great job and only a couple of yellows slowed the action. Pole sitter Kody Havens was dominant as he led from start to finish and managed to keep some distance from the rest of the field. His main challenger was Doug Smith who came from the fourth row to finish second.
The Sport Compacts went nonstop with another pole sitter Denny Berghahn Jr leading all the way. However, the win was not an easy one for the driver that pulled over from Nebraska. Mitchell Bunch was all over him and they battled throughout the race. Meanwhile, Jake Benischek came from the fifth row for third and may have been the fastest car at the end.
Josh Daniels led from start to finish to win the Stock Car feature, a race that wasn't up to the standards that I normally expect from the Stock Cars. The track started to dry out and most of the cars were hugging the low groove by this point as the 431 mph winds (it had picked up in intensity) pretty much dried out the track. Daniels guarded the low groove and kept everyone behind him. Mike Nichols was the show as he started in the fifth row(bad redraw) and used most of what was left of the track to get up to second, but he ran out of laps to put a heavy challenge on Daniels. Things got explosive early in the race when Buck Schafroth cut corner four too tight, clipped an infield tire and caused him to barrel roll hard twice right in the middle of the track. He was fortunately OK.
As well as Ricky Thornton Jr is running these days, he doesn't really need any special breaks. But he caught one for the start of the Modified feature when pole sitter Bob Daniels opted for the tail. This moved Thornton Jr to the pole and it was just a matter of him not screwing up for twenty laps as Gustin and Happy Gilman gave chase. Most ended up riding the banking in turns one and two and hugging the tires on the West end of the track.
The thing that separates man from the apes is our appose able thumbs so that we can write. However, as I look back on my notes, they gradually went downhill as the evening progressed and my thumb started locking up. By the end of the Modifieds, J Fred Mugs could have made better notes than I! It got so bad and I looked so pathetic that even "Crazy Martin" shared his blanket with me.
The final checkered flag waved just after 10 pm with wind gusts reported as having dropped to 429 mph by the end of things. I'm guessing that MVG is shooting for a time just a little bit earlier than that in weeks to come, but that might be hard to accomplish with the six class program that he is presenting. Thanks to him and all his staff for a warm welcome. Oh, and can you calm that wind down for the MLRA show upcoming?
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